GMIT and Mayo GAA offer second run of popular sports coaching part-time course

GMIT Mayo is pleased to offer, for the second year, the innovative new 13-week course in Contemporary Sports Coaching Practices, developed by GMIT academics in association with members of Mayo GAA. The course will commence on Thursday 16 January 2020 (7 to 9pm) with the first guest lecture delivered by James Horan, Mayo GAA Football Manager, on the topic ‘The role of the coach’.

The purpose of this level 6 course (10 credits/Special Purpose Award) is to equip participants with the knowledge, skills and competence to apply contemporary coaching principles and practices when coaching sport in order to enhance performance. The blended learning course, which runs until early April (2020), will feature lectures by the following panel of guest lecturers who have coached or participated at the highest level in sport. They include Conor Finn who will talk on the topic of physical fitness, John Ginty (Mental fitness), Liam Moffatt (Injury prevention and management), Dr Sean Moffatt (Best practice for the management of sports injuries in the club context), Austin O’Malley (Leadership), Dr Lisa Ryan (Nutrition), Alan Dillon (Attitude in sport), Maria Staunton (The female athlete), Peter Wilkins (Long-term player/athlete development), John Courell and Michael Schlingermann (Coaching for teams and individuals), and Ciaran O’Hara and Mike Finnerty (Coaching and the role of media)

Professor Neville McClenaghan, Vice President for Mayo campus, GMIT, says: “Following last year’s great success, we are delighted to offer the opportunity for students enrolled on this collaborative programme to gain direct insights and learning from some of the best practicing professionals in their individual fields.”

Dr Deirdre Garvey, Head of Lifelong Learning, GMIT Mayo, says: “Emphasis will be placed on real life applications of theory to practice with unique insights and knowledge from these marquee coaches and players, into best coaching practice within an Irish context.”

Liam Moffatt, newly elected Mayo GAA Chairman, says: “We are delighted once again to partner with GMIT in delivering this new and innovative course.”

The course will explore the following:

Physical Fitness for Sport: The components of fitness; speed, strength, stamina, suppleness- how much is needed to play sport. Introduction to best practices in developing physical fitness for sports performance.

Mental Fitness for Sport: The components of mental fitness for sports performance; Commitment, Concentration, Self-confidence, Concentration- what is required for sports performance. Introduction to common applied performance enhancement techniques in sports psychology, goal setting, performance profiling, imagery, mental rehearsal, arousal control, stress management, attentional control and focusing, thought stopping.

Motor Skill Development in Sport: Principles and practices of motor skill development in sport; introduction to skills development frameworks and constraints-based coaching.
Sports Injury and Rehabilitation: Mechanisms involved in sports injury and rehabilitation. Best practice guidelines for injury prevention in coaching practice.

Nutrition for Sports Performance: The components, and role of a healthy and nutritious diet for performance in sport. Suitable fluid intake. Fuelling recovery.

Reflective Journaling: Reflective journaling practice and procedures. Explanation of how to maintain a reflective coaching journal. Creating rich descriptions of personal coaching practise.

Reflection guided by two framing questions; what worked effectively? what could be improved?

Application forms can be downloaded from GMIT’s Lifelong Learning website LLLMayo@gmit.ie and/or by contacting the following lecturers in GMIT Mayo’s Outdoor Education degree programme(s) :Pauline Jordan, Pauline.Jordan@gmit.ie Tel: 094-9043119 and Stephen Hannon, Stephen.Hannon@gmit.ie Tel: 094-9043121 or Nigel Jennings, GMIT Mayo Sports Officer, Nigel.Jennings@gmit.ie Tel: 094-9043244.

For further information about GMIT Mayo see https://www.facebook.com/GMITmayo/
For further information about GMIT Mayo’s Outdoor Education course(s) – GA885 and GA891, see:
https://www.gmit.ie/outdoor-education/bachelor-arts-outdoor-education-and-leisure

ENDS   

Galway-Mayo IT, IT Sligo and Letterkenny IT are working towards becoming a Technological University for the west and northwest of Ireland.

Issued by Regina Daly, GMIT Communications & Press Officer
Tel 091 742826/ 087-9618355 (m) email: regina.daly@gmit.ie  www.gmit.ie/news